Show Me Your Love
by reindeerguardian
Summary: Dib and Zim have had a complicated relationship over the years, and that's not about to change. In which Dib likes Zim, Zim likes Dib, but the timing is all wrong. And to make matters worse the High School Prom is coming up.
1. I've Got A Collar Full Of Chemistry

It was a warm summer evening and fifteen year old Dib Membrane sat at the desk in his room, absentmindedly tapping a pencil to his lips in thought. He had been working on geometry homework, but had soon lost interest in it, instead favoring to doodle spaceships on a piece of notepaper. Every night he found himself staring at the stars before bed. One hand was working on the paper, the other held an ice pack to his left eye.

Earlier that afternoon in the schoolyard, a group of boys had cornered him against a wall. He had been heading into the main building to interrogate a certain alien menace about the death threats left in his locker, (Zim had been unusually quiet lately, he had to have been up to something) but was quickly shoved back by a strong, brute force.

"Heard you're a faggot now," One of Torque Smackey's goons had sneered at him. Dib blinked at him in was certainly previously unknown news to him.

"Not that I can recall." Dib chuckled lamely, trying to be funny. his humour was obviously lost on the boy. The kid had growled at this denial and hauled Dib up by the collar of his shirt.

"Why don't you just admit it, you're a queer, Membrane, we all know it." He crowed, glancing around at his buddies for affirmation. The other boys whooped in proclamation, eager to witness the last beatdown of the year before school let out for the summer. Dib stared at them all, wide eyed and speechless. He didn't know what to say.

"Admit it!" The goon yelled, fist pulled back, ready to strike. Dib made a helpless noise, shaking his head as best he could, bewildered. The bully's eyes twinkled and he grinned maliciously, letting his fist fly directly into Dib's face. He promptly dropped him, high fiving the other boys. They ambled off in peels of laughter, casting snickering glances back his way, calling out obscenities. Dib simply groaned and clutched at his face, struggling to stand up. They had knocked his glasses onto the ground. He feebly felt around for them with one hand. Five minutes passed and Dib huffed, climbing to his feet in defeat. He took a few steps, trying to discern which direction he was going. He promptly heard a crunch under his foot and groaned in frustration.

At least he'd found his glasses.

After that he'd stumbled home, in a half blind stupor. Upon entering the door he was met with Gaz grumbling about his late arrival. She'd handed him the ice pack currently held to his face, and said nothing more on the subject. He had started to stutter an apology, an explanation, but she simply ignored him, returning her attention to her game. Dib sighed and had headed upstairs.

And now here he was. Doodling stars on his math homework. Not that it really mattered; he passed all his classes with flying colors no matter if he turned his homework in or not. The work wasn't very challenging but he did it to keep up appearances and please his father. Dib stared at the paper. What a start to his summer vacation. Why had those boys accused him of being a homosexual? Not that Dib minded; he knew there was nothing wrong with it. It was only another thing that added to the long list of why people didn't like him. But it wasn't true. Sure Dib didn't take an interest in pursuing girls like every other high school boy, but that didn't mean he was out pursuing boys either. Dib couldn't recall the last time he had actually looked at another human being with interest, regardless of gender. He was usually too busy with Zim.

There was the ear splitting sound of glass shattering behind him, followed by a shout of exclamation in a language he didn't understand, but was familiar to hearing. Dib wheeled around, trying to focus on the scene before him. Which wasn't easy with one eye banged up and his glasses broken.

Zim, his long time alien arch rival, had broken into his room through the window. The Invader let out a string of what Dib assumed to be obscenities in his mother tongue, picking glass out of his uniform. Dib stared at him in surprise for a moment before shaking his head to clear it from his stupor. (which didn't help his pounding headache in the least.)

"What are you doing?" Dib hissed, not at all in the mood for Zim and his shenanigans. True he hadn't seen the alien for a few days, which spelled trouble, but he had other problems besides Zim. The alien seemed to realize that he wasn't alone and immediately regained his composure, arms behind his back, feet apart, head up; a battle stance. He visibly relaxed when he took in the sight of Dib.

"Boy, are you a mess." Zim snickered, plopping himself down on Dib's bed as though he had been there a million times before. The punch to his face must have really rattled things in Dib's brain, because the thought of Zim and his bed were provoking feelings in him that should not have ever seen the light of day. Dib jumped up in an attempt to bury the thought deep, deep down.

"Yeah well…" Dib paused and looked the alien up and down to find something to combat him with. "At least I don't have glass in my wig." He countered, standing with his arms crossed defiantly. The muscles in Zim's face contorted, giving a look of what could translate to a raised eyebrow on his eyebrowless face.

"Fair enough." he chuckled at Dib's obvious discomfort, plucking a shard of glass from his wig.

"What are you doing here, Zim?" Dib sighed tiredly. He really just wanted to go to bed. It had been a tiring day. Zim's face immediately lost his grin and he looked everywhere that wasn't Dib.

"I heard you were given the 'Beatdown Of A Century'." Zim air-quoted quietly. He tilted his chin up and was suddenly on his feet, inspecting Dib's injured eye, bringing their faces close together.

"It's not that bad." Zim commented, "The way the males celebrated, I assumed you at least had a broken limb. Tallests, I've done worse to you than this." He chuckled. Dib felt his face heating up at the alien's up close inspection. He could feel Zim's breath brushing his face. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"They were...celebrating?" Dib asked, not doubting it for a moment. Zim nodded slowly, as though in thought.

"They broke your optical enhancers, I assume?" He asked, tilting his head a bit. Dib blinked for a moment with his good eye.

"Oh! My glasses, yeah. Punched 'em right off my face." He laughed slightly, leaving out the part where he had blindly stepped on them himself. Zim seemed to be considering something.

"...I have your spare pair." He confessed with a reluctant growl. Dib stared at him for a few seconds, not comprehending.

"My spare? I thought I had lost them! My dad almost killed me for that, Zim!" Dib cried, exasperated. Zim rolled his contact covered eyes.

"I highly doubt your parental unit would kill you." he snorted. "And if he did, that'd just be yet another victory for Zim!" He laughed. Dib sighed in angry defeat. He eyed the Irken warily.

"So...can I have them?" He asked begrudgingly. "The spare?" He clarified after Zim gave him a look of confusion.

"Eh? Oh! Yes. That is why I brought it up, isn't it?" He hissed defensively. Dib put his hands up in defense. Zim's mouth tightened suddenly.

"They are….in my base." He sighed, running a hand through his false hair, debating whether or not to take the human with him. "Ah, screw it. It's not like you haven't been in my base before." He hissed angrily. Dib glanced at his laptop. He had security cameras hooked up in Zim's base. But Zim didn't have to know that, he concluded with a flush. Zim made a move to jump out the shattered window but jumped back at Dib's shout of refusal.

"Can we just go out the front door, for once?" Dib cried. The alien groaned in annoyance but followed him downstairs anyway. They both glanced towards Gaz, who sat on the couch playing her Game Slave.

"Gaz, I'm going to Zim's. I'll be back later." Dib called responsibly. Zim bolted out the door with a startled yelp as Gaz looked up at them irately. She flashed what Dib constituted as a grin.

"Have fun with your boyfriend, Dib." Dib's eyes widened in shock.

"He is not my boyfriend! Don't say that!" He hissed angrily. The predatory look on Gaz's face was enough to have him flinch back. He promptly shut the door behind him.

They walked for the first ten minutes to Zim's house in relative silence. It wasn't every day you went for a stroll through town with your worst enemy. If they could really call each other enemies at this point. Actually, their relationship had a lot less hostility than it had once held, but they weren't exactly friends in the least. Much less boyfriends. What did Gaz know? Dib wondered briefly if Irken were even capable of feelings like friendship. Or love. He grit his teeth in annoyance.

"So... this is great." Dib sighed, trying to break the silence and shake his train of thought. " I'll be able to see out of one eye at least." He half joked. Zim eyed him from the side.

"I could heal your injury, y'know." He murmured. Dib sucked in a breath in surprise. He was about to inquire on Zim's sudden kindness towards him, when they arrived at the Irken's poorly designed base. He gave the lawn gnomes a wary glance; he still carried a scar on his left calf from one of them. But Zim simply walked straight up the sidewalk to the front door, Dib trailing quietly behind.

The interior to Zim's home was no different than it had been the day he landed on Earth. Gir sat on the couch, staring at the television. When he noticed Dib, the little robot broke into a wide grin, waving at him fervently.

"Hi!" Gir shrieked before bursting into a fit of giggles. Dib waved back slightly. Zim ignored his SIR unit completely and they traveled down into the lab.

No matter how many times Dib came down here, it still fascinated him to no end. He silently cursed his hindered eyesight. There was so much to see. He could just make out one of his surveillance cameras hidden in the wall. Zim glanced at him, curiously following his gaze but Dib quickly stalled him by pointing at a device to the right that looked like a fishing hook attached to a robotic arm from the ceiling.

"Hey uh, what's that?" Dib asked. Zim looked at the contraption and broke into a wide, sharp toothed grin.

"Perhaps you will have the honor of someday finding out." He chuckled with malice. Dib swallowed nervously. Zim promptly spun around, going to a nearby wall. He waved his hand in front it and a small opening appeared, almost like a cabinet door. He reached inside and pulled out, low and behold, Dib's spare pair of glasses. He handed them to the human with visible reluctance.

"Why did you take them?" Dib asked, placing the glasses on his face. He could now see the alien plainly with his one good eye. Zim shrugged.

"Just to bug you." He said nonchalantly. He seemed to remember that the human's other eye was wounded and fished around a nearby desk for something that looked like a laser pointer to Dib. Zim pushed on one end and the other end began to light up faintly, before fizzing out. Zim made a displeased clicking sound.

"We'll have to go up to the roof." He said thoughtfully. "Computer! Take us to the roof!" He shouted. The computer gave a groan of annoyance. Dib's brow furrowed. He was pretty sure there wasn't anywhere for them to stand on the roof. It was practically a vertical slant. Before he could voice this however, the ground underneath them shook violently. Dib gave a shout of surprise as the ceiling rushed up to meet them. He braced himself for an impact but it never came. The ceiling had opened to reveal the ground level of the house. This repeated until the platform they stood on was a part of the roof. On either side of them was the slanted tile of the original roof, with their small circular platform raised to the middle. Dib whistled, impressed.

"Yes, yes. Marvel at the superior technology of Zim!" The Irken boasted. Dib rolled his eyes.

"Why did we have to come up here?" He asked, slightly irritated. Zim blinked and seemed to remember his task. He held up the laser pointer.

"This runs on solar energy." He stated. Dib glanced at the sun. It had began to set already. Zim noticed this as well. "So we better make this quick." He added. He quickly pressed the end facing him. The other end began to glow, reminding Dib vaguely of a cigarette. The glow slowly became brighter as Zim pointed it towards Dib's eye. Dib began to panic. What if this was a trap? A trick to slay the enemy? He did not want Zim pointing some kind of unknown alien technology at his face. Zim seemed to sense his mistrust and he clicked in annoyance.

"Believe me, Dib-filth, if I wanted to kill you I would have done it already. This device is painless." He stated plainly. Suddenly a beam of light shot out of the lit end of the pointer directly into Dib's bruised eye. He gave a startled sound, but true to Zim's word he didn't feel any pain. Zim was bent, once again, very close to Dib's face, watching the procedure carefully. Dib stared back with his good eye; he could just barely make out the red of Zim's eyes behind his contact lenses. He wondered for a moment if the alien thought anything of personal space. After a few more seconds, Zim pulled away, clicking the laser off the same way one would a pen. Dib blinked a few times and, miraculously, he could see just as though he'd never been punched in the first place. In fact, it seemed his vision in his left eye was better than it had been in his whole life. He sat stunned.

"You healed my eye." He said in wonder. Zim rolled his in response.

"That was the point, wasn't it?" He growled. Dib shook his head in bewilderment.

"No I mean….you fixed my eye…to the point I wouldn't have to wear glasses if they were both like this." He breathed. Zim looked amused.

"I could heal the other one, too." He offered. Dib stared at him for a long time. His brow furrowed as he looked at the setting sun, and back to Zim. Zim, his enemy. Zim, the alien invader sent to destroy everything he held dear. Zim, whom he thought he would die before ever receiving help from.

"Why are you being so nice ?" He asked quietly. Zim blinked in surprise. He was silent for a moment before letting out a sigh. He pulled the wig off his head and slumped to sit on the platform. He was quiet again for a long time. Dib sat next to him, their legs dangling over the side of the platform. Zim pulled off his contacts with a tired sound. The sun was set, and the stars were beginning to show. Zim stared up at them almost longingly with such reverence that Dib almost felt as though he were intruding on the aliens private actions. Like he had been caught seeing something he shouldn't have.

"You remind me of myself. Many planetary orbits ago." Zim confessed, not taking his eyes off of the sky. This was not something Dib expected to hear.

"I do?" He asked in surprise. The Irken nodded.

"I too was an object of ridicule in my smeethood. Often picked on and outnumbered. Cowards wouldn't dare face me in a fair fight." He growled. "But Irken are not trained to fight fair. We are trained to conquer, through any means necessary." Dib was silent, unsure if Zim was going to continue. "Invader training is rigorous. In fact, many do not make it out alive. But I did." Zim's ruby red eyes were shining at the memory. "I graduated top of my class," he breathed. "I went on to become a successful scientist on Irk. An outstanding invader. Perhaps if I had grown a bit taller I could have…." Zim trailed off. He shook his head and looked back at Dib. "My Tallests have cut off contact with me." He said slowly. "They said…I am…defective…that my mission was only a ploy to get rid of me. I was not supposed to find a planet to conquer. I was supposed to die." Zim stared at Dib for a few minutes, the light had gone from his eyes. Dib grew increasingly uncomfortable under his sad gaze.

"Zim…...I'm so sorry…" Dib said slowly, unsure of how to address him. This must be why Zim hadn't been around lately. He was moping.

"Yes, well, victory for Earth," Zim chuckled tiredly. "You win. By default, of course." He sniffed. "Because Zim is not an invader anymore." The little alien looked so sad, Dib thought he might cry. If Irken were capable of tears.

"So what?" Dib said suddenly, startling the alien. "Who cares what your leader think? You're a million miles away from them now, you can do whatever you want! You don't have to listen to anyone. You're a free man!" Dib exclaimed. Zim only shook his head.

"An Irken without a mission is hardly an Irken at all. Banishment is the worst fate that could possibly befall a soldier. Worse than death. Especially on such a primitive planet. You can't even travel past your moon." Zim sighed. Dib swallowed. Without a mission, Zim would leave, wouldn't he?

"Well….who says you need Irk to take over the planet? Why not just do it for yourself and prove them wrong?" Zim looked at him and gave a weary grin.

"Perhaps you're onto something, human." He smiled. Dib looked at him. Zim really was beautiful. The moonlight reflecting off of his green skin made it clear just how alien he was. His large red eyes reflecting light, giving them a glowing aura. Dib swallowed nervously, not for the first time today.

"I beat up those humans." Zim confessed.

"The….the bullies?" Dib asked. Zim nodded in affirmation.

"Nobody gets to harm you except me." He said, deadly serious. Dib laughed awkwardly. No one had ever defended him before. Not even Gaz, the only person he would have ever half-expected to. He was touched.

"I think you're really great, Zim." Dib admitted. He could feel his face heating up and silently thanked his lucky stars for the darkness. Zim blinked at him in confusion.

"You hate me." He stated. Dib cleared his throat.

"Well. I don't like your mission. It does involve destroying my homeworld and everything i love. But...you as a person? You're loyal and devoted and perserverant. You're intelligent and strong and clever," Dib turned his body to face Zim's, head on. "You're beautiful." He finished with a rushed breath. Zim stared at him, antenna twirling in thought. He seemed to be studying the human.

Dib looked into Zim's huge red orbs. They were so unlike anything he'd ever seen before. He found himself leaning forward, placing one hand on the side of Zim's face before moving a bit closer to kiss him. He kissed the alien softly, their mouths seemed to be slightly more different than he anticipated. He was smooth and cool to the touch. Zim gave a noise of surprise, pushing Dib away with a start.

"This is….a human mating ritual." Zim said, squinting his eyes in confusion. Dib blushed, looking at the ground.

"Not...exactly…" He mumbled. Zim made a clicking sound of realization.

"I know what this is." He said,"You have romantic feelings for Zim!" He said triumphantly. Dib suddenly couldn't breathe. He tried to stutter out an explanation, but Zim just laughed, long and loud. Dib deflated, his hurt slowly turning to anger. He could feel tears pricking in his newly restored eyes. He stood up quuckly.

"Damn it Zim!" Dib yelled. "Take me down!" he wiped tears from his eyes. "I want to go home!" Zim stopped laughing and looked at Dib with a small, sad smile, getting up from his position to join Dib in standing.

"I didn't mean to hurt your feelings," The alien chuckled, seeming sincerely apologetic. "But Irken do not have the capacity for such romantic feelings. We don't need them." He paused. "And you are a very young Earthling."

"I'm fifteen!" Dib interjected, outraged.

"I am many, many years your senior, Dib. I believe that is illegal on this planet, yes?" Dib stared at him in disbelief. Since when did age matter to an alien?

"Yeah well, since when do you care about human laws? My age never stopped you from trying to kill me."

"Because that was part of my mission. A threat to my operation must be stopped, no matter the cost." Zim said, matter of factly. He paused. "And...this…." He said, gesturing between the two of them, "Is not part of my mission." Dib looked at him for a long time in silence.

"But….your mission...wasn't real…?" Dib struggled to find the logic behind the alien's reasoning. Zim shrugged.

"If it wasn't then, then it is now. On my own terms." Zim's eyes gleamed with determination. He gave Dib an apologetic look. "So, quite frankly human, we must stick to being enemies. That's how this whole thing works. I try to take over the Earth, you try to thwart 's the way it's gotta be until one of us dies." He was staring at Dib for affirmation. "This...romantic pursuit of Zim just doesn't fit. Do you understand?" He was very quiet with this last bit.

Dib nodded slowly. He understood. But that didn't make things hurt any less. He wanted to go home.

"Take me home, Zim, please." He muttered tiredly. Zim pursed his lips and said nothing more to him.

"Computer, take us back to the lab." He ordered.

Dib walked home alone in the dark. He couldn't bring himself to look up at the stars. He opened the front door and glanced towards the couch, where he had last seen Gaz. She wasn't there. The sound of the refrigerator door slamming shut confirmed her whereabouts in the kitchen. She walked out with a can of soda in her hand, glancing at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You look worse than you did when you left." She observed. Dib sighed. And plopped himself onto the couch. Gaz sat next to him, a good foot of space between them, of course.

"So what happened?" She asked, popping open her soda can. "You confess your undying love for Zim or something?" Dib's apparent silence was something of an answer and Gaz looked at him strangely.

Under her scrutinizing gaze he mumbled out, "Something like that." She sipped her soda in thoughtful surprise.

"I'm assuming it didn't go over well."

He shook his head slowly. Gaz sucked in a breath and sighed.

"Well Dib, he is an alien. I don't know what you expected out of him."

"I kissed him." Dib admitted. Gaz groaned.

"Shit, Dib." She murmured.

"I know."

Gaz shrugged. "Oh well. Live and learn. At least now you don't have to pine over him and wonder 'what if'. Things can just go back to normal. You can both go back to your idiotic routine." She said, picking up the remote and turning on the TV. Dib stood up and stretched.

"Thanks Gaz" He said quietly. He heard her hum in response before he headed upstairs.

Dib bypassed the shower, deciding to deal with that in the morning. He was exhausted, both emotionally and physically. He dropped into bed like a stone, giving his laptop a glance. He hauled it up into his lap and hesitated before activating the security cameras set up in Zim's base. There were four screens, one was occupied by Gir, who was chewing on a cardboard were blank, the last showed Zim in his lab. Dib put in his headphones and activated the audio.

"Computer," Zim was saying, "What can you tell me about human romance?" He seemed apprehensive.

"Perhaps I am defective. I should not feel pity for The Dib." The alien murmured.

Dib decided he didn't want to see the rest and quickly closed his laptop, setting it on his desk beside him. A chill drifted into the room from the busted window and Dib groaned in realization that he'd have to explain that to his father. He drew the blankets around him tighter.

Tomorrow he would go back to thwarting Zim's evil plans, just like always. Just as though today had never happened. He rolled onto his side and decided, for the first time in a long time, to not look at the stars before falling asleep.


	2. if You're Gonna Be The Death Of Me

It was a clear friday night, around 10 PM. The night was young and full of potential for a young teenager and seventeen year old Dib Membrane sat in his bedroom, completely taking it for granted while flicking through Netflix absently, finding nothing of interest. He groaned; though out of boredom or frustration he didn't know. Perhaps both.

Of course, there was that house party that Star Quarterback Of The Skool's Football Team Billy Dillinger was throwing, but Dib had a feeling he wouldn't be welcome. He had gained a reputation over the years as the town's insane inhabitant. And though Dib rationalized that there were people far less stable than he was, it didn't matter; and to his peers especially. So here he was, lounging about in sweatpants and a Mysterious Mysteries T-shirt that had certainly seen better days. He didn't need some juvenile party anyway, he was above such stupidities like teenage drunkenness and sexual interactions, he told himself as he wiped cheeto dust from his fingers. He briefly thought about asking Gaz to join him but she had already departed for the night. He wouldn't have been surprised if she was at Billy Dillinger's place right now. Not that she would've actually watched a movie with him, but it would've been nice to try. Or at least know that she was nearby. Dib sighed as he threw himself mercilessly onto his comforter, groaning once more in irritation. That's when he heard a small noise.

He sat up, straining his ears for the sound again for a moment but he didn't hear anything. Then it sounded again, like tapping on his bedroom window. He looked over to the window. It was closed, with the blinds drawn shut. He shifted from his place on the bed to pull back the blinds. He looked out at the sky, half expecting an alien spacecraft or something of the sort. There was nothing but stars. A small rock was thrown at the glass in front of him, startling Dib so much that he yelped. Glancing down at his front lawn, he was met with the sight of his old rival standing there, looking up at him expectantly, gloved hands on his tiny hips. Dib opened the window and poked his head out.

"What do you want, Zim." he called down to the alien. Zim's face was pulled into a determined expression.

"Get out here, Dib-filth! You're going to help me with my latest reconnaissance mission." he stated matter of factly. Dib rolled his eyes.

"There's no way I'm helping you with your evil scheming." To be honest, Dib was quite tired of this old song and dance. It had become evident a few years ago that if Zim were capable of taking over the Earth it would've happened already. Instead the two of them had lost the malice of their original rivalry and fell into a familiar routine of half hearted attempts at thwarting one another. Each doing their best to annoy the other and generally hating one another. They were bitter enemies who just so happened to hang out on the weekends. Frankly, Dib felt that Zim should move on from the whole world domination thing. There had been a brief period of time a few years ago, when Dib had been struggling with his sexuality a bit, that he had even considered Zim a potential romantic partner. But reality had delivered him a cruel slap to the face with the realization that it was highly unlikely to ever happen.

He was roused from his thoughts by another rock whizzing past his head.

"C'mon Dirt child! We've got a party to crash!" Zim decreed breaking into a wide sharp toothed grin. Dib blinked.

"Billy Dillinger's party?"

Zim made an annoyed noise, making hurried gesticulations for Dib to come outside.

"Um, duh. It's only been the talk of the skool for two weeks!" Zim said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Now hurry up and escort Zim to this adolescent gathering!" The little alien stomped his foot impatiently. Dib squinted through his glasses down below him at what appeared to be glitter on Zim's foot. Curiosity piqued, he surrendered and made his way downstairs, pausing to change into a pair of dark jeans and a bland gray T-shirt. He slipped on his shoes and well-worn coat before heading out the front door to see what Zim was up to.

The Irken hadn't changed much in the past six years. He was a few inches taller than he had been when he arrived, which he prided himself on. He was still a good head shorter than Dib, but Dib quickly learned that addressing Zim's height only led to black eyes on his part. Zim had learned a great deal of English, hardly ever needing his PAK to translate what humans were saying as he once had. His vernacular was so up to speed he often knew more about what people were saying than Dib did. Zim's ego had also decreased significantly. Though whether this was because of his interactions on Earth, isolation from his home planet, or perhaps a maturing attitude, Dib wasn't sure. But he was sure that talking to the alien was easier now. Zim also had learned about a phenomenon apparently unique to Earth; fashion.

Dib blinked in confusion at Zim. There was something off about him but Dib couldn't place it. The Irken's human disguise had changed very little: same contacts, same black wig but styled a bit differently. Tonight though, he had opted against his usual Invader uniform and was wearing a black button up shirt paired with dark, impossibly tight leggings that showed just how thin his legs were. The unusual part were the dark pink, glittering, six inch heels on Zim's feet.

Zim stood proudly. Hands on his hips, chest thrust out. He was almost eye to eye with Dib.

"How do you like Zim's new height shoes?" he asked smugly.

Dib stared for a moment, casting a questioning glance at Zim's face and then looked back down at the heels again. He burst into laughter. Zim's face fell quickly into one of confusion.

"Zim," Dib managed between fits of laughter, he quickly recovered from doubling over, taking a moment to catch his breath. "Those are girl shoes!" Zim blinked and looked down at his feet.

"Shoes have genders?" he asked, lifting a foot as though to inspect it for signs of life. Dib chuckled and shook his head.

"Doesn't matter man. Wear whatever you want." Zim nodded as though that were good enough for him and immediately went back to business.

"I have noticed that in the entire six years I've resided on this planet, I've yet to attend one of your young adult gatherings." Dib raised an eyebrow at that. "And what better way to gain information on your species than attend one of these parties?" Dib gave a small smile of realization.

"You just want to go to the party, don't you?"

Zim paused and looked at the teenager, pursing his lips.

"Yes."

Dib grimaced at his honesty and inwardly chuckled.

"Well," he murmured, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I don't think that we'd be very welcome...in that environment." Dib finished. Zim rolled his false eyes.

"I'm an invader. I invade. It's what I do." Dib couldn't argue with that logic.

"That might be true for you, but I'm not exactly an Irken soldier." Dib grunted lamely. "Plus, all those stuck up cool kids are kind of intimidating." He admitted. Zim's smile widened.

"What better way to face your fears than to run blindly ahead?" the Irken offered, already pushing the human toward Dib's cheap Datsun he'd obtained from a junkyard the summer before. His father, Professor Membrane, had insisted on buying his son a brand new, state of the art vehicle, but Dib had wanted to prove that he was self sufficient enough to get his own ride. True, it wasn't a thing of beauty, but it got excellent gas mileage and was reliable. Plus Dib had figured he could fix it up a little, what with his best nemesis being an alien with much more superior technology. (Not that he would ever admit such a thing to Zim.)

Dib tried to think of another excuse. The worst that could happen was being kicked out of the party. Dib figured he had nothing to lose. With one last glance over his shoulder at Zim, he managed one last excuse.

"Don't you need a date to get into one of Billy Dillinger's parties?" he offered in a last ditch effort. Zim snorted as he opened the door to the passenger seat.

"That is exactly why you are escorting me." The Irken said smoothly as he fastened his seatbelt into place. Dib sighed in defeat. He'd already known the outcome of his question but hearing it only seemed to seal his fate. He slid into the driver's seat, strapped himself in, and turned the key into ignition. Dib sighed once more, resigned to his fate. He pushed up his glasses, before putting the car in drive and backing out of the driveway.

Dib glanced over at Zim, who fiddled with the radio for a few moments before apparently finding a song that he liked. The music was soothing for a moment before Dib listened to the lyrics. It was a sad song about a man going into space, and his spaceship malfunctioning. Dib's brow furrowed. Zim was probably relating to the hurt alienation of the lyrics. He glanced once more at his nemesis, who was staring out the window into the night sky. Suddenly Dib was uncomfortable and tightened his grip on the steering wheel, banishing all thoughts and simply driving, staring blankly at the road ahead of him. There had been a moment similar to this a few summers ago. Dib bit his lip at the memory. The next song was something by Ke$ha which lightened the mood considerably. Zim perked up at the catchy tune, humming along with the stereo, nodding his head slightly to the beat. Dib relaxed for a bit. He was not so used to the reflective side of Zim. It brought back painful memories.

His stomach lurched with anxiety however as they pulled onto the street where Billy Dillinger's house was. There were cars lining the streets and finding a parking space was a bit of a challenge but Dib managed to find a spot a street away. He took a deep breath, and looked over at Zim who was practically bouncing with excitement.

"You ready to do this?" he asked, fully aware of how ready the alien was.

"Of course! Zim was hatched ready!" he laughed, tossing aside his seatbelt and practically leaping out the car door. They began the short walk up to the driveway. Dib had expected Zim to have some trouble traversing the gravel terrain in his six inch heels, but the alien was practically a picture of grace, gliding up the driveway. The house was huge, light pouring out from the windows, the music could be heard blaring a mile away. Dib would have expected no less from snobby rich kids. He briefly wondered if people viewed him as a "rich kid" because of his father's success. (He never understood why his father was praised as much as he was; Super Toast left something to be desired as far as Dib was concerned.) The front lawn was littered with trash and a few stray teens lingering on the porch or in one case, hanging from a tree in the front yard by his underwear. Zim took his arm and linked it through Dib's. Dib quirked an eyebrow at him in question. Zim rolled his eyes so hard Dib thought his contacts might fall out.

"Don't get any ideas, human. Zim is only using you as his ticket in." he hissed. "Y'know. Because you need a date to get in or whatever." he mumbled as an afterthought. Dib shrugged it off as they approached the front door. A few of the kids hanging around on the porch eyed them up, whispering to one another. Dib ignored this as well. He reached out and rang the doorbell, wondering if it would even be heard over the music.

"Hey Zim," A girl to the left of them snickered, pausing for a moment to ash her cigarette. "Nice shoes, you mind if I borrow 'em sometime?" her question was punctuated with a laugh from the few others surrounding her. Dib narrowed his eyes. It was one thing when he made fun of Zim, but he was sick of everyone else treating them like shit. Zim looked unperturbed, he grinned at her.

"Of course, Margo. I would be delighted to lend you these height shoes, where should I deposit them? In your currently decaying lungs? Or perhaps I should place them up your fat ass." He said sweetly. Margo's eyes went wide while Dib and a few of the other teens laughed. Zim pointedly turned away from her, back towards the door, ringing the doorbell once more.

"Whatever, faggots." Margo mumbled dejectedly. Dib whirled around at that, seeing red. But before he could open his mouth, Zim was pulling him into the house.

"Pay no mind to them, dirt child." Zim said calmly, patting Dib's arm in a surprising display of compassion. "Classic humans." Zim chuckled almost fondly as he withdrew his arm from Dib's. Dib couldn't tell if he was relieved or slightly hurt at the action. He shook the thought from his head as he surveyed the scene.

There was booze everywhere. Kegs, cases, and ice chests all over the living room floor. There was beer in coffee mugs, water bottles, and soda cups. Red plastic cups sat in the hands of almost every adolescent he set his eyes on. The music was loud and poppin'. The lyrics were indistinguishable against the bass but people were singing along anyway. There was a mass of bodies swaying along to the beat, grinding on one another in a way with such reverence and devotion that it almost seemed religious. Towards the staircase on a long rectangular couch sat about ten to fifteen people, all of which were stoned or in the process of becoming stoned. Dib almost screamed when he saw Zim was being handed a bong. He mentally cursed himself for taking his eyes off the alien and dashed over to him.

"Zim! What are you doing!?" Dib cried, swiping the bong out of the alien's gloved clutches. Zim gave a noise of protest as Dib handed it back to the stoner on the couch.

"Hey man, don't be such a downer." The stoner said. "Let the little dude have some fun, what are you, his mom?" he accused. Dib glared at him before grabbing Zim and leading him away from the couch, toward the kitchen.

"What did you do that for?!" Zim shrieked. "How am I supposed to have an authentic party experience if you don't let me experience it?! Zim is not a smeet, he does not need to be looked after. In fact, he is much older and wiser than your human brain can even begin to comprehend!" Dib had learned how to tune out the Irken's monologues years ago. He knew perfectly well how old Zim was.

"Look Zim, I don't know what kind of drugs they have on your planet, but I don't want you to have to be exposed to the ones here." Truthfully, he didn't know the exact effects of marijuana but he didn't want it to have some adverse effect on Zim's alien body. Who knew what could happen. Zim, however, scoffed at him.

"Zim is aware of the effects of marijuana. I have been under the influence before, you know." Dib couldn't believe what he was hearing. Who had given Zim weed? Zim didn't have any friends. He'd never even been to a party before! Dib decided he didn't want to know. There was a tap on his shoulder and he glanced over his shoulder to tell whoever it was to leave them alone. His brain stopped functioning when he caught sight of the culprit.

The most beautiful girl Dib had ever seen was standing behind them. She smiled at him.

"Um. Would you mind moving out of the way?" She asked. Dib nodded quickly, stepping out of her path and almost squashing Zim in the process, who let out a yelp. She laughed lightly, pausing to look him up and down in amusement

"What's your name?" she asked.

Dib fought to find his voice for a moment. Never before had any female taken an interest in him.

"Dib Membrane." he managed to croak out, clearing his throat self consciously. He saw Zim rolling his eyes and elbowed the alien, who let out a squawk of surprise.

"Membrane, huh?" she said, tapping her lips as though in thought. "Like the scientist?" Dib quickly deflated, realising her angle. People who only used him for his father's power were typically not people Dib got on with.

"Yeah." he murmured, suddenly wanting to be a million miles from here.

"I never really got what the big deal was with that guy. Sure he's smart and all but Super Toast totally left something to be desired." Dib's eyes widened.

"Exactly," he breathed, suddenly unable to look anywhere but at her.

"My name's Kelsi." Her smile was bright as she stretched out a hand towards him. "Wanna dance?"

Dib was lead onto the makeshift dance floor before he even realised he had taken her hand. There was a shout of anger behind him and he looked over his shoulder at Zim, who had an irked expression on his face, stomping his glittered foot angrily. Dib managed a shrug and an apologetic smile as he turned his attention back to Kelsi. Her afro puffs shook as she danced, Dib felt his face heating up at their close proximity. Never had he been in such a situation. With his luck, he probably never would be again, he mused.

Meanwhile Zim watched as the two human adolescents danced in a manner that reminded him of frenzied animals. A look around suggested that wasn't far from the truth. He sighed and turned on his six inch heel dramatically, his good mood squashed under that girl's platform shoes. Didn't she know platform's were out this season?

"Tacky little human rat." Zim murmured as he leaned against a wall despondently. He could feel his antennae drooping and he hated himself for such a display of weakness, even if no one could see them. A few girls to his right heard him murmuring.

"Why the long face, doll?" A female with long brown hair asked. Zim blinked at her for a moment before answering cautiously.

"My date ditched me for another girl." he growled. There was a chorus of gasps from the three girls, who immediately circled in around him.

"What a jerk!"

"You don't deserve that, hun."

"Who does that guy think he is?"

Zim huffed, "Probably thinks he's the savior of this planet." The girls collectively growled, all ready to practically disembowel Dib. Zim appreciated their anger on his behalf, he was flattered actually, but as much as he disliked the human he did not want him dead. Not yet, at least.

"Thank you, ladies, but it does not matter what Zi- what I feel." Zim deflated, correcting himself.

"What do you mean?" A blonde to his right asked. Zim tapped his fingers together, looking at the floor for moment, brow furrowed.

"The Dib and I are not in any sort of romantic relationship. He is," Zim paused, watching as Kelsi brought Dib a drink. She batted her lashes at him, but Dib was busy inspecting the label of the bottle in his hand with a tiny ghost printed on the front. "...Utterly clueless." Zim finished with a click of his tongue. Her blatant attempts at flirting were going unnoticed, thank The Tallests.

"So, you came here together, but you're not together, together?" One girl slurred in question. Zim nodded lamely. The idea of being an "item", as the humans put it, was so foreign to him. And yet, it was much more appealing to him than it had been six years ago. There had been an incident two years ago, when Dib had been fifteen, and Zim found that it had completely changed his disposition on human affection. He shook his head at the memory, wig moving sharply with his gesticulations. "We do have…..history." Zim cringed at his confession. "But I initially turned him down." His eyes downcast. The girls cooed in sympathy.

"Ya never know whatcha got 'till it's gone." one girl slurred. The others nodded in agreement. Zim picked up one of their drinks and downed it like a dehydrated man would drink water.

Kelsi, Dib found, was a very interesting person. She went to school a town over from him and had a cocker spaniel named Cookie. He also found interesting her way of not being disgusted by him. After a few drinks on both their parts, she leaned her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her waist and they swayed dangerously off balance. She laughed at something he said and raised her head slightly to whisper in his ear.

"Let's go upstairs." She cooed.

Dib had never felt this alive in his entire life. This beat being chased by Yeti down a mountain by a long shot. No wonder most high school boys were always partying and chasing after girls. He couldn't believe what he'd been missing out on.

Zim growled as he watched the two sway together. They were both intoxicated, he knew that much. He also figured he was well on his way to joining them in that respect. He glanced around the room for the umpteenth time, only now did he realize that the Gaz-human was here as well. She was leaning on an armchair, kissing a female he couldn't identify at the moment. He shook his head and looked back to where Dib and the She-Beast had been. They had moved! They were going upstairs! Zim had seen too many Earth Lindsay Lohan movies to recognize this as a universal sign of human mating.

He would not let that happen. He quickly sprinted after them as fast as his inebriated little legs would carry him. Making it past the sea of dancers in his six inch heels would be an obstacle, but he had to stop Dib from doing this. He had certainly faced greater challenges.

Dib groaned into Kelsi's mouth. He felt more than heard her laugh in return, as they kissed sloppily. Her hands tangled through his hair as he grabbed her waist and brought her closer to him. She kissed down his neck, sucking on his collarbone before pulling off with a loud, wet, popping sound. He shivered in response, rubbing his hands up and down the sides of her body. They leaned in to kiss once more, when suddenly the door to their small room was kicked open with a burst of light from the hallway. It was Zim.

"Zim what the hell!" Dib cried.

"Do you know him?" Kelsi asked in drunk confusion, apparently not recognizing him from the kitchen earlier. Dib groaned.

"Yes, he does know me. He knows me very well. He is my date!" Zim snapped at her, teeth bared. Kelsi looked to Dib for clarification. Dib stared at the alien for a moment before turning back to Kesli.

"Ok, we came here together. But we didn't really come together!" He explained. Kelsi looked at him with apparent disgust.

"Sorry, but I don't sleep with guys who have other girls-or boys- on the side." She hissed. She seemed to consider for a moment. "Actually, I'm not sorry." She concluded before stumbling drunkenly past Zim and out into the hallway.

"Kelsi wait!" Dib cried, jumping up to run after her, but he was promptly shoved back into the room by Zim.

"What the fuck Zim!" Dib yelled. "You just scared off the only girl in the state that would even come near me!" Zim growled in response.

"Good!" He hissed, "You are mine, human!" Dib stared at him in aggravated, inebriated confusion.

"What are you talking about?!" He cried out. Zim let out a sound of frustration before tearing off his wig angrily.

"I am returning your affections!" He screamed, throwing the wig onto the floor. "I like you...romantically! You stupid, insolent, idiotic human!" He yelled, huffing and puffing afterwards. Dib didn't say anything. They stared at one another, chests heaving. Eventually the silence became too heavy and Zim anxiously jumped out the nearby window onto the roof.

He sat, huddled, knees drawn up to his chest. He pulled off his contacts in anger, chittering to himself in upset. His antennae twitched, picking up the vibrations of Dib struggling to follow him onto the roof. The human settled next to him awkwardly, Zim noticed he had his wig in his hand.

"Zim….." He started, unsure how to continue. "When I…When I kissed you, that summer, I was just a confused kid with a crush," he confessed. "Shit, I'm still a confused kid." He laughed slightly.

"You've grown a lot since then." Zim said quietly. Dib blinked at him, suddenly much more sober than he had been five minutes ago.

"Is it...is it because I'm taller?" Dib asked. Zim turned to look at him, eyes wide, his antennae were pointed up in surprise. Dib thought he could make out a blush forming on the alien's face. He knew that on Irk their social hierarchy was based on height, as ludicrous as it sounded. Perhaps it was just an instinct in Zim to fall for a creature taller than him. The alien shook his head fervently.

"No….I meant, you've matured since then. Not just physically." He muttered. Dib looked out at the front lawn in thought.

"Zim. We've known each other a long time. We've had some crazy adventures. Some good and some bad. I think we both know I'm not the the only one that's changed over the years." He gave a small smile and Zim seemed to reflect on this. He gave a small, unsure nod. "What I'm getting at is that we're all the other really has. Whether we're rivals or not...I don't want to ruin what we have with something we don't even know will work." Dib finished with a sigh. Zim visibly deflated, antennae flat against his head.

"Zim understands." He muttered, leaning his head onto Dib's side. They sat like that for a long time in companionable silence; looking at the night sky. There was a chirping, a high warbling sound and Dib realized it was Zim doing something akin to humming. He vaguely recognized it as the tune they had heard in the car about the spaceman.

"Which one is Irk?" Dib asked, gesturing towards the stars. Zim blinked at him as though he didn't understand. He lifted his small, gloved hand and pointed to a small pinprick of light. It almost seemed to be on the other side of the universe.

"Do you miss it?" He asked quietly, realizing it was a stupid question.

"Of course." Zim stated. He sounded very far away. Dib wondered what it would be like to be so far from home for so long. To have been abandoned by your own people and have all contact with them cut off. It sounded like a cruel nightmare. He wrapped an arm around the Irken comfortingly. Zim stirred, as though waken from a dream. He stood up abruptly, grabbing his wig from Dib and putting in his contact lenses. He crawled back through the window into the house. Dib sat and stared after him. Zim poked his head back out the window.

"Well?" He started impatiently. "Are you gonna sit out there all night or are you going to get your ass in here and party with me?" He growled. Dib broke into a lopsided grin and grabbed Zim's outstretched hand.

Three hours later, Dib was on the verge of passing out.

"How're we gonna get home?" He asked, more to himself than to Zim. Zim shrugged from his place on the staircase. People were beginning to clear out. The house was an absolute wreck and Dib felt sorry for Billy Dillinger, whose parents were due to be home sometime the next afternoon. He spotted Gaz canoodling with a girl who seemed familiar but he was too drunk to really discern who it was.

"Gaz," he cried, stumbling over to her. She looked up at him in surprise.

"Dib? What are you doing here?" He was about to answer but she quickly shut him down with an 'I Don't Care'. Zim came shuffling after him, saluting the two females with a grin.

"Invader Tak! Good t'see ya," he slurred. He murmured something to her in Irken and jerked a thumb towards Dib. Dib blinked. So it was Tak. Normally he would've inquired on why she was here, with his sister, but he was honestly just too drunk to care.

"So, Dib, you planning on driving home?" Gaz inquired. Dib opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by his sister answering for him. "I thought not. C'mon boys. I'll drive you home." Dib handed her his keys, which, were miraculously still on his person.

They dropped off Zim first, who didn't even make it into his house before passing out.

"Should we help him?" Dib asked tiredly. Gaz shook her head

"He'll be fine." She said as she sped away, leaving Zim sprawled on his front lawn.

They drove the rest of the way home in relative silence, the radio playing filled in their gaps.

"Why'd you drive us home?" Dib asked. Gaz shrugged and gave him a small grin.

"Let's just say I'm in a good mood." She hummed. Dib could make out hickies on her neck but he decided not to mention it. She gave him a side glance.

"What's with the hickey?" She asked him. Dib blinked, putting a hand to where his neck met his collarbone and blushed.

"Oh yeah...I met a girl." He laughed. "Zim scared her off though."

"Typical." She laughed, pulling into their driveway.

Dib fell to bed like he was a rock sinking into water. He thought over the events of tonight and grinned to himself. Zim would probably show up whining tomorrow about a hangover. Which reminded him that he needed to pick up aspirin in the morning.

He fell asleep to the stars looking down on him.


End file.
